Chugosh the outcast strode through the gas operated doors of the science section. He was still mulling over the unusual reaction of the half Klingon woman. She had heard him, but seemed to be lost in thought otherwise, even distressed, though she wore no emotion on her face. At his question, she had turned and walked. Assuming she was leading him to the science closet, he had followed until she had entered a private quarters and shut the door behind her. He had stood confused for a moment, absently stroking the wormling as it cuddled against his body. Finally he had resorted to asking a passing crewman, a young human male in a blue uniform, who had turned out to be assigned to and on his way to the science section. In idle chatter, Chugosh discovered that this ship, while being a warship, still had the extensive science facilities found on most Federation ships.

He could see as he awoke from his reverie the intact tooth he had captured as well as remnants of half a dozen more teeth among many other ongoing projects. His own charge began to vibrate and writhe as it got closer to the cases containing the teeth. The live tooth in containment also vibrated, though it was held firmly in a forcefield bracket to keep it from harming anything more. One of the many blue clad science officers present noted the behavior, even as he studied the thing in the Klingon's arms.

"What is that you have there, Mister..?" asked the officer, looking closer.

"It is the offspring of the great worm. It was inside one of the fangs of the great beast that was chewing through a conduit."

"Fascinating!" He took the tricorder from Chugosh and handed it to another officer to download and analyze.

Chugosh related his own theory, as well as his experiences with the fang and the beast it had come from as he and the scientist enfolded the wormling in a study case. All the while, he felt the thing's growing comfort with him and the other humanoids present. A strange bond they were sharing, he wondered if this were a similar bond to that of a targ pup and its mother. He shared this thought too, and found himself festooned with an array of headware designed to detect and quantify psychic radiation. He was in the midst of a series of experements with the wormling, studying its responses to different atmos and radiations. It adapted quickly and well to each situation, and seemed to feed on most of the different kinds of radiation, pouring out wide swaths of theron and chiron band waves. If it were not for the extensive shielding, the humans in the science bay would have all dropped dead in a few minutes. As it was, though, everyone was safe. One officer took it as his duty to scan everyone to be sure and found only the large Klingon stranger had any signifigant radiation damage. A stern reccomendation followed for Chugosh to go to Sick bay as soon as possible.

After more tests, he was surprised by a loud crack. He turned, as most in the bay did, to see the tooth in containment had split and its own wormling began to struggle free. From this one came waves of malicious illwil as it fell to the floor and began to wriggle towards its sibling. No longer possessing the hard shell, it could not penetrate the case the first, now larger worm was in before several men took the thing and put it, too in containment. It seemed apparent that these thing liked each other no more than they liked the ships they were sent to destroy. Chugosh and the other scientists wondered if this were not part of the worms lifecycle, to hate and hunt each other in this stage of their lives.

Finally, hours later, amid a torrent of discovery and study, Chugosh was tired. He had enough for now to fill his curious mind and wanted only rest. He wandered towards his quarters. He passed the door to sick bay, only to double back and walk in. He made his way past a couple of biobeds attended by anxious medics to a free one and tumbled into the padded platform. He lay there for only a moment before a shadow crossed his face and he saw someone standing by him.

"I have some burns and residual radiation. I require mending." He waited a bit and then remembered how fond these Feds were of certain pleasantries and added, "Please."

Star felt herself lifted and placed on her bed. She could not struggle any longer to stay away. Tiredness surpassed her fear of sleeping. Her last fleeting thought was hoping the Shrouder who shared residence in your brain was not behind the agent causing this feeling that was overwhelming her.

In that semi-unconscious state where time did not control, a minute would seem like a nanosecond and a nanosecond would seem like an eternity, Star's uncontrolled thoughts started to have a life of their own. As a Doctor she knew how sleep deprivation could affect a person. She knew the symptoms she felt were because of her lack of sleep, yet, she tried to fight unconsciousness. She thought, perhaps, if she could just rest giving her body time to relax, she could survive until she and the Shrouder were separate beings once again.

'Separate beings...how strange,' she thought. Before it seemed a special connection she enjoyed when she thought of the presence as just Jake. Not wanting to release herself into unconsciousness, she forced her mind to think. Her first contact with Sjet, looking at what he had become...the Shrouder, she had reservations for him to help her with Luke's situation. But, after speaking to him, she felt something, a strange trust. Now.....she didn't know, she wasn't sure. There were those moments that the Shrouder seemed to, indeed, care for her. 'He could have absorbed you. You are too trusting,' her mind thought to her. 'You may yet be absorbed. Do not sleep.' Star felt fear, again.

Hearing Commander Osswell's words saying he would watch over her was little comfort, but she managed to slur out three words. "Thank you, Commander," is all she could muster as her eyes became to heavy to keep open. She hated to be overwhelmed this way. Her legs, arms, and head became extremely heavy; the battle was lost. Star drifted off into a restless sleep with too many thoughts clammering for attention as they attacked her unconscious mind.

Jake shook his head at the Klingon, blue eyes rolling in their orbits. The tall lanky Martian turned and walked back to his desk, selecting a medical scanner from the desk he returned, sitting on the end of the biobed beside Chugosh’s and began to tedious work of making sure all the bits and pieces were in the right places.

“The way people treat this place…” he said half to himself, and half to the Klingon “I’m more surprised they don’t call sickbay the Holiday Inn…”

He shrugged and smiled, the smile any Doctor had in there pocket’s to assure any patient. Well, apart from some none humanoid species but that was more on the basis of their species not having lips or facial muscles. He turned again and rummaged through a rolling stack of trays, plucking a few items from it. A metallic cuff, a hypospray and the tricorder made the return trip with him as he hummed to himself, smiling like an idiot.

“Okay well good news is the bangs and scratches are at worst superficial. You platelets which…boggle the mind I’m afraid…are doing a bag up job fixing the damage all by them selves. I’d not be surprised to find T cells in your blood work that held little bath’lets…Ba’leths…”

He shook his head.

“Well you get the idea. Anyway this,” he held up the hypospray “is a mild dioxidant, you’ll feel a little weak for a bit and maybe a tad sleepy. It’s a way of making sure we limit the amount of radiation circulating around in your blood.”

He then held up the cuff.

“This is a dosimeter, it’ll measure your rad count and report it back to me.” He smiled “Can’t have you microwaving the entire ship now can we? Now…how are you.”

The big Klingon sat up and then stood. He took the proffered hand in his own and gave it a single pump, once up, once down. None of the aggressive squeezing which might be expected of his species, he smiled and said, "I am pleased to make your acquaintance, Jake Sjet of Mars. I am Chugosh, an outcast."

Special agent Wynne Rodgers sat in the back of the Atlas quietly reading a PADD she had brought with her. After all these years, things finally are accumulating to a showdown. She was sure this would not have happened in her life time. And, without the Shrouder with her, she was concerned she would be able to deflect questions that shouldn't be answered.

Captain Ja'arda had been sitting at the front of the Atlas, keeping an eye on the navigational controls. They were making good progress with returning to the Zealous, and it would just be a matter of time before they'd be back home.

But, if they failed with their next mission, then there probably would be no home for any of them to return to due to the threat from the wolves.

She turned her focus toward the back of the yacht, noticing that the special agent was sitting in a seat near the rear, rather than occupying one of the rooms that had been made available during the trip. The Betazoid got up from her seat and made her way toward Rodgers.

"Are you okay?" Azanialix asked, trying to break the ice.

Looking up at the Captain, Rodgers surmised her before answering, "I am fine, Captain. How are you?" Rodgers was not one to hold casual conversation. Probably, she thought it, it was because of being around the Shrouders too long.

"As well as can be expected, considering the amount of time it's taking us to get back to the Zealous. It'll be good to be home again, though," she noted.

The Betazoid paused for a moment and thought about something, which had been gnawing at her since that meeting with Admiral Granger. "To be honest, I'd be lying if I said that I wasn't nervous about the upcoming mission. There's a lot riding on our success, and a lot that can be lost if we fail."

Putting down the PADD Wynne had in her hand, she gestured to a chair across from her. "Have a seat, Captain. I am sure you were more than nervous when you watched Admiral Granger being carried out of his office. This is a grave situation, but, nonetheless, one that we have been preparing for for quite some time. These Wolves, as we mentioned, are and have been in our universe dormant until such time as they are awakened. I didn't expect this to happen in my life time, but something has triggered them. We have been preparing for this, however."

The Captain of the Zealous was still very curious about the wolves. The information she had gotten about them was minimal, at best, although one fact had always remained glaringly clear - the threat that the wolves posed if they weren't stopped. Strangely enough, Thalia hadn't even provided any information regarding the wolves, similar to how Valron would sometimes give Jake important information that could have helped with situations.

Taking a breath, she decided to ask, "Do you know what may have brought them out of their dormant state? Could it have been the awakening of Lasadel Fostra, or the events that took place on the Zealous?"

"In a small part," Rodgers responded. "But, even then they were not really awakened. They stirred. It was the most recent incident that became the final stop in their awakening caused by two of your crew. The doctor and the Shrouder aboard the ship." Pausing a moment, Wynne picked up the PADD tapping it and reviewing something on the screen. Looking back up at the Captain, she continued, "It could have been planned for that Shrouder to go to the ship he took your doctor to. It may have been a means for him to gather something there. But, that is speculation. What has happened is the Wolves did indeed awake. They are coming and are awakening other Wolves in our areas. That planet we should you and the destroyed ships is just the beginning. But, there is a plan in motion. Your ship is crucial to that plan. The very fate of the universe will rest in our hands."

Azanialix thought about something for a moment. It almost seemed like the intent was to destroy the wolves. But, had other options also been considered?

"The wolves were dormant once. Do you know if there might be a way that we could return the wolves to their slumber, so they no longer pose a threat to the galaxy? there could be a lot of potential for scientific knowledge gained if we might be able to study them," she noted.

"Captain, Captain. There can be no scientific study of them. To state it simply, they were created to purge the universe of disease. We are the disease. They have even evolved past their programming taking on an entity of themselves. As long as they are present, whether active or dormant, they will be a continual threat. Whether it be a year, ten years, hundreds of years into the future, if we permit them to remain dormant, they will return to extract their brand of justice. Do you want to take that risk, Captain?"

"The last time that the wolves were not dormant, the Iconians dominated most of the galaxy as we know it. They had the technology to be able to destroy the wolves, but they chose to render them into a state of dormancy for some reason unknown to us," Captain Ja'arda pointed out.

"The Federation does not possess the advanced technolgy that the Iconians had. There's no gurantee that we'd even be able to destroy them, to be honest. If we were somehow able to again make sure that they become dormant, it would give time for the Federation to prepare - for our technology to advance enough to where the wolves would be considered as a minor nuisance and not as a major threat."

Zania paused for a moment to conceede. "They have to be dealt with, but I just wish that we could have had a chance to learn more and study the wolves before having no other recourse but to destroy them."

Wynne laughed at the Captain's response. "Captain, Captain. The Iconiand didn't put the Wolves into a state of dormancy. The Wolves destroyed the Iconians. When the Wolves had completed their task, that is, the destruction of the disease on the Universe, they placed themselves into dormancy until such time as they were needed again. Your reasoning is flawed. The First had a means to destroy them. That means is in our reach to be used again. The fear is that if the Wolves reach this weapon first, then we might all as well lift are arms and surrender to being absorbed by them. We will have one chance and one chance only to rid the Universe of them. And, my dear Captain, it isn't up for debate. What we must do, we have to do. The decision has been made."

The Betazoid couldn't help but to sigh, since her intention had been misunderstood. "I'm not trying to debate it. I had only asked if other alternatives had been considered before coming to the decision that is sending us along our current path, or if there might have been an opportunity to learn more from these wolves before we are forced to annhialate them."

A slight smile crossed Wynne's face before she answered, "Yes. All other alternatives had been considered and rejected. The Shrouders made it very clear what would happen if we tried to save the Wolves from utter anniliation."

"Has anyone considered what happens when we do destroy the wolves? Could there be other threats out there, which are equally as strong if not more so, which we might have to face?" she wondered.

Placing her thumb and forefinger against the bridge of her nose, Wynne responded without looking up, "All avenues and questions have been explored, Captain, countless times. Lowering her hand as she raised her head, "There's nothing else to discuss. The powers that be, who overlook this area, have decided. Now, it is time for action. Every minute we delay we take a greater risk in losing."

The agent had avoided her question, which didn't sit very well with Captain Ja'arda. The way that she shot it down, without even bothering to look at her in the eye, suggested that Azanialix had hit on something important. There probably were other threats out there from the Iconian days, yet these guys didn't want to reveal everything.

But, why? If there were other threats, why would they hold back? More importantly, if they knew about the wolves, why did they wait with taking action until after the wolves had been awakened?

Zania almost chuckled for a moment again. "There's not much action we can take until we get back to the Zealous," she started, glancing out of the front viewport to see where they were at, only to add, "which will be at least another 15 minutes. We're approaching the Briar Patch, and we still have to get through that first."

A glint crossed through Wynne's eyes as she replied, "Yes, indeed. The Briar Patch." With that Rodgers picked up the PADD and began reviewing the contents once more as if dismissing the Captain from any further discussion.

Azanialix felt very unsettled by that discussion. If Rodgers was going to be on the Zealous as an advisor on this mission, it was imperative for them to at least come up with some kind of working relationship. They didn't have to meet eye to eye on everything, but if Rodgers continued to dismiss her all the time or failed to consider alternatives, it was going to make this situation much more tense - not only on herself, but also the entire Zealous crew.

She returned to her seat at the front of the yacht, focusing on the controls once more. They just had to clear the Briar Patch, and then they'd be safely back on board the Zealous . . .

OOC: This is a back post that takes place shortly before the Atlas leaves Earth.

Once the intruders had left the Admirals office, Crystal gave a quick glanced up at Drass and vanished. The flash of Q light was less than a split second and she reappeared invisibly just inside the Brikars right ear as a tiny, needle point sized speck. Audible only to him for the time being she spoke softly. "That was quite a show. I hope the Admiral and everyone else here will be all right, but I for one will do what I can to watch over all of us carefully".

Watching the intruders exit the office, Drass saw Crystal glance at him, then vanish. He stiffened slightly at the sound of her disembodied voice in his ear, but when he thought about it, he came to the conclusion that with a Q, anything was possible. He nodded to Captain Ja'adra, then moved for the door. "That was quite a show," he said under his breath, "And I will do everything within my power to ensure the safety of the Captain and her crew." He took his orders very seriously.

Crystal snuggled in a little closer into the edge of the brikars ear. "So would I in a case like this. I don't trust these strangers. It might be a good idea to check with the captain, see what farther orders might be. Then maybe I can try and find where they probably dumped the Admiral. What do you think"?

"Accompany our guest back to the shuttle and keep an eye him. Commander Robinson and I have something to take care of before we leave."

"Yes, Sir." Ducking, he stepped through the door and looked around, not seeing the Admiral anywhere. "Any idea where to begin your search?" he inquired under his breath.

"Not sure". For a minute there was silence as Crystal's mind raced.

Drass raised a stony facsimile of an eyebrow at Crystal's comment as he followed Specialist Rodgers towards the shuttle pads. She seemed to know where she was going, so he focused on keeping an eye on her. "Perhaps he went to go address the Federation Council.”

“The man was physically dragged out of his office. But we can only hope he was smart and went to the council. The wolves are trouble and nothing but. I've had to deal with them before in the distant past and know other worlds and races who have. None have survived their attacks".

Drass nodded grimly. “Let's hope this time will be different...”

"That's about all we can do right now". Crystal breathed a soft sigh. "I know Q who would interfere with what's going on here. I'm trying hard not to".

“Those must be the ones they warned us about at the Academy,” Drass remarked. “From what I’ve seen so far, you’re nothing like them.”

"Flatterer,” Crystal whispered, giving the inside of his ear a little tickle in response. "Too few have ever said anything nice about my people. I'll go check on the Admiral. Don't worry, I'll find and catch up with you and the Atlas members before you take off. Even if the ship did leave, it's not a problem to find. See you in a while big guy". Giving him another quick ear tickle, she flew off.

Wynne quietly watched the Captain move back to the front of the ship. Letting out a slight sigh, Wynne really hated clandestine situations. The Captain had every right to know what was going on. After all, she was ultimately responsible for the well being of her entire crew. Wynne could only imagine how it felt to be responsible for a crew and not have the necessary tools to make decisions.

But, Wynne did know how it felt only on a greater scale. When she first accepted this position, she thought she was working with others who could speculate possible threats to the Federation and make adequate judgments on how to defend based on what was discovered. She had had no idea what the threat had been at that time. Now she did.

And, she couldn't divulge all of the information. It would seem the time scale has moved up quickly. The Shrouders she worked with seemed almost anxious about what had happened; so unlike them.

Lowering her PADD to her lap, Wynne thought about the one Shrouder she had been working closely with for a number of months. An odd lot, but one you could not turn your back on. Even he knew more of what was happening than Wynne did, and she had full disclosure to everything. She thought that, perhaps, it was their connection to each other.

Glancing out at the window watching the streaking stars, Wynne would know soon enough what would be the next step. She knew the Shrouder on the ship was still alive. Complicating matters was the fact that the Shrouder shared residence in one, Dr. Star Laurent. Protecting this doctor would also be complicated. She knew of no human who survived a joining with a Shrouder. Usually they just absorbed their host. Wynne wondered why this particular Shrouder has still allowed the Doctor to live. 'Perhaps,' Wynne thought, 'it must be the weapon that apparently the Doctor has possession of.'

Shaking herself to no one, Wynne knew that unfounded speculation would not assist in this situation. Cold, hard facts is what she needed to go on. She wanted to see this other person, this Jake, as well.

Placing a small object into her ear, Wynne tapped it and thought, 'Shrouder, this is Wynne. We will be arriving at the Zealous within fifteen minutes. I will be speaking to the Doctor and the person called Jake to ascertain more information. I will be in contact with you then. All is going as planned. Special Agent Wynne Shrouder out.'

Wynne removed the earpiece and carefully stowed it away in the inner seam of her uniform jacket. Smiling, she knew there were advantages to her position and use of technology beyond that of the Federation. Raising the PADD from her lap, Rodgers once again reviewed the information she would need when they arrived at the Zealous.

For a while, it seemed as if he had been invisible in sickbay. Nobody had answered him when he had asked for help, so he returned to the biobed that the one doctor had wanted him to stay and rest on. He didn't know what it was, but something still felt . . . wrong. He couldn't put his finger on it yet.

That's when a nurse came over, informing him that Jarrold Scott had woken up and wanted to talk to him. Murdock got up from the biobed, although this time he didn't collapse to the floor, like the first time. Gingerly, he made his way over and saw that the engineer was finally awake.

Jarrold laid in his biobed, his body still wracked with pain from the experience of being flooded with a high dose of radiation and then being slammed into a forcefield. He had a feeling that the pain was going to continue for a while.

His mind had been wondering... mainly to his new fiancee. He wondered if anyone had told him that her that he had almost died trying to track down a source of unknown radiation and was laying in sickbay. Actually he preferred that she didn't know. He did want her worrying about him when she had other things to be concerned with.

It felt like someone was standing over him so he opened his eyes and looked up. "Ahhh... Commander Murdock. I heard that it was you that pulled me out. I wanted to thank you." he said.

"I didn't actually pull you out," Murdock stated, the usual playfullness gone from his approach. "I only managed to figure out that you were in trouble and reached you when the radiation also affected me. If not for your combadge signal, I don't think any of us would have known."

The look on Murdock's face was one of seriousness. Even the warm and mischevious sparkle in his eyes seemed to be totally gone.

"Well I still want to thank you. If you hadn't figured out that I was in trouble I would have probably been burned to a crisp by the radiation in there." Jarrold thought for a moment and then quickly tapped his comm-badge. "Lieutenant Commander Scott to Engineering, shut down all power to primary matter / antimatter transfer conduits and switch to secondarys. We have an exotic radiation leak and I don't want it spreading or damaging the primaries." he said.

Without waiting for confirmation he tapped his comm-badge off and looked back up at Murdock. "Sorry about that. Just thought that it was important to get that done quickly. When we get out of sickbay I have a 200 year old bottle of brandy that I'd like to share with you.

Murdock nodded when he heard Jarrold mention about wanting to shut down the systems that may have been responsible for the strange radiation leak. He then heard the engineer suggest that they share a bottle of brandy that was 200 years old once both of them got out of sickbay.
"Sounds like that might be a good vintage," Murdock noted. "Consider the invitation as being accepted. Just let me know when and where."

Jarrold nodded. "I doubt that doctor is going to release either one of us soon." he said. "I'll ask if they can bring up a deck of cards after my next anti-rad treatment. That is if you know how to play poker and wouldn't mind the company."

The Texan nodded. "That sounds like it might be fun, and I certainly wouldn't mind the company at all. I'm a pretty fair poker player, although there are a few other card games that I know."

"Considering we'll be in here for a bit I guess I'll have to learn a few of the from you."

Just then that same nurse that had been working on Jarrold earlier approached. "Excuse me sirs but I have to administer the next round of treatments." she said.

Jarrold nodded and watched as Murdock stood up and walked away. He was sure that they would talk again later.

As Ens.Winchester left sick bay, he was wondering the extent of the damage to deck six after the teeth had a violent tour of that deck. 'I know that i didn't get a good look at the damage when i was there first' he thought to him-self. "Humph. I shouldn't have even bin down there. If the shuttle bay had not bin on deck six....." he paused. "Why am i talking to my self"? he wondered. As he entered the turbo lift, he continued talking to him-self so quality that he couldn't hear him-self. Almost as he had finished talking to him-self, he remembered to tell the computer what deck he wanted to be taken to. "Deck six" he commanded. As he heard the hum of the lift, it made him think of why he was going to deck six. 'To see what damage the teeth caused' he thought a little ticked at him-self. When he arrived at deck six, he was surprised at the damage these teeth had done. As he walked along the corridor, he was amazed at all the damage these teeth had caused. Holes in the bulkheads. Some doors with large dents. "Wow. I wonder how the teeth got aboard." he said to him self. "I hope we leave this area of space soon." As he returned to the turbo lift, he remembered something like this had happened when he was on the U.S.S. Rolands, when they were boarded by the Cardassians on the Cardassian boarder.When he arrived at the turbo lift after seeing all the damage, he wondered how they could have done all this. When he entered the lift he ordered the computer to take him to the bridge. After about 2 min, the lift door opened and he stepped out on to the bridge.

“Daddy! Daddy!” James called out as he tried to run towards his father, his tiny legs trying to keep up with the rest of him, before getting tangled up. James fell to the floor and started to cry. His father rushed to his side, and knelt down on one knee.“Come now James.” His father said picking his up, and checking James over to make sure he’d not done any real damage to himself. “First you learn to walk, and then run.” His father said with a hearty chuckle.

James rubbed his eyes trying to remember how long he’d been lost in his thoughts. He looked down at what he was doing, before carefully looking around the bridge. He’d probably looked like he was deep in thought, but James didn’t want to risk his career in Star Fleet by being caught day dreaming on the job. Now where had he got to cross referencing the worms to the star jellies? He looked up as the turbo lift doors opened and an Ensign walked out onto the bridge.

James waved him over with a friendly smile.
“Have you happened to pass by deck 6 on your way up here?” James asked warmly. “I’ve not had time to look at the damage down by the teeth yet, and I was hoping you could help me out. The information about the damage they’d caused and how would be a great help to me.” James said and waited with a friendly and warm smile for the Ensign to reply.

Tag – Ensign Winchester

Lieutenant JG James Black
Intel
USS Zealous

When you stare into the depths of space, all your see is infinity staring back at you, letting you know, just how insignificant you really are.

"Yes. I wanted to see the damage the teeth caused after the...Violent tore they took." he said as Ens.Winchester approached the lieutenant. "Ensign Dean Winchester" he said with a warm smile as he extended his hand.
"Lieutenant Junior grade James Black." he said, grabbing Ens.Winchester's hand, shaking it. "How extensive is the damage?"

Looking around the bridge Ens.Winchester replied " Well, there are large dents in the doors, holes in walls & bulkheads. There is a lot of those."
"I've bin here a little more than two hours and no one has told me how the teeth ended getting on board. Would you mind telling me?"

"I've bin here a little more than two hours and no one has told me how the teeth ended getting on board. Would you mind telling me?"

James was quickly inputting the damage report Dean had given him, as Dean asked his question. James held up a single finger to let Dean know he’d heard him, and would answer him shortly. He really wanted to go over the damage with the time the Teeth had had to cause the damage, but he didn’t want to keep Dean waiting any longer than necessary.

James turned his attention back to Dean.

“Well Ensign Winchester, seeing as you’ve saved me a trip down to deck 6, I’ll tell you what I know. After the Messenger had destroyed the Klingon ship, it fired a number of small projectiles at us. These projectiles were the Teeth, and as soon as they hit our hull, they started eating though.” James had a brief sad look on his face, but quickly dismissed it.

“It was a shame to kill such a beautiful creature, but still, we’re alive and should be thankful. Now Ensign Winchester, if you’ll excuse me, I really should get back to work.” James said with a thank you smile, before turning back to his console.

As Dean turned away from Lt.Black to look around the bridge, he remembered that the captain would be returning to the ship soon. In mid-thought he had reached the tactical station. Remembering that he needed to get to the turbo lift, not the tactical station. as he proceeded to the lift, he tried so hard to put the dream he had in sick bay out of his mind. As he entered the lift, an other stepped out. When he glanced up to see who it was, he recognized the Ensign but he could not put his finger on who she was or where he had seen her before. As the lift doors closed, he told the computer to take him to deck 6. As he arrived on the damaged deck, he was trying to remembered where the yacht docking was. on his way down the corridor, he found a map of deck six. As he got it online (being off line due to the attack), he found yacht docking. He proceeded to it. As he entered the docking area,he saw the yacht doors open and the Captain coming out.

They were home, back on the Zealous again. Captain Azanialix Ja'arda turned to Ensign Sison and requested, "Can you perform the post-flight check on the systems? I should get to the Bridge She watched as he nodded, and then the Betazoid got up from the seat. She proceeded toward the back of the yacht, and moved close to Ensign Kebron. In a soft voice so only he could hear, she whispered, "Escort the agent to some guest quarters, and keep her under guard. Don't let her out of your sight for an instant Ensign Kebron nodded, and Zania then proceeded to exit the yacht. Once she stepped foot onto the Zealous again, she saw Ti'ana Sullivan, who was there to greet her. She expressed her relief that they were back on board the Zealous. "It's good to be back, Ti'ana. Let's head up to my Ready Room where you can fill me in on the situation," she suggested. Just then, she could see another Ensign approaching . .

As Dean approached the Captain and commander with a friendly look on his face, he stopped by the commander looking at her and nodded. Then he turned and looked at the Captain and stood as still as possible .

Captain Ja'arda saw the Ensign stiffen and come to attention. He seemed to be new to the Zealous, at least in the sense that she hadn't seen him on a duty shift before. Then again, they did pick up a number of crew members when they had stopped at a Starbase before proceeding into the Briar Patch"At ease, Ensign," she smiled at him, trying to get him to relax. "I don't believe I've seen you on board the Zealous before."

As Dean loosens up he replays "I am Ens. Dean Winchester. I came on board 3 hours ago after an unfortunate greeting. Then I met the doctor." Dean smiled warmly.

Three hours ago? Azanialix caught herself blinking at that statement.
She wasn't sure how the Ensign could have come on board the Zealous three hours ago when the ship had been within the Briar Patch for more than a day. "Which doctor did you meet?" she asked, out of curiosity. As she did that, she made a mental note to herself that she still had to meet with Yunisca, after her traumatic experience on Argo

"Dr.Laurent ma'am" Ens.Winchester replayed.

Zania recalled that Dr. Laurent was the one who had been on the Atlas and disappeared mysteriously from the ship. She had also carried the essence of Jake Sjet within her.
"What department are you serving in, Ensign?" she wondered.

"Tactical" Dean said, sounding a bit nerves. "Ma'am....." He paused.

"Ah, so you're serving under Commander Osswell. He's a fine officer, and I'm sure you can learn a lot from him," Zania noted with a gentle smile

Dean looked down at the floor and then at the Captain.

"Ma'am, i hope you dont find this rude but you look familiar. Have we met"? he asked

Captain Ja'arda wasn't sure how to respond to that. She had met many Starfleet officers over the years, including a few who had graced the roster of the Zealous itself. The face of this Ensign eluded her, however.
"I dont believe we have, Ensign," Azanialix told him, almost apologetically.

Ens.Winchester looked a little surprised. " I am sorry. I had swore that we had met some where" he had looked at the commander. "Captain. I am due on the bridge in 5 min and I am sure that you would like to go to the bridge as well. Maybe we could talk on the way, if you would like"

Zania looked to Ti'ana, who nodded. The two of them did need to get up to the Ready Room and discuss what was going on with the mission, plus the next assignment they'd have to go on as soon as they were done here.
"Sure, that would be good. I need to head up there anyways," she mentioned.

As the three left toward the turbo lift, Dean brought up the subject of the attack. "This is where i........was.....uh....shall we say "Welcomed" " Dean said eyeing the patch of blood on the spot where one of the teeth tore through his arm. "Captain, how long do you think it will take to fix all the damage the teeth caused"?

"Our Engineering staff is among the best, and I have full confidence in their abilities. I'm sure that they'll be able to repair the damage before we leave on our next mission," the Betazoid noted with confidence.

As they entered the turbo lift Dean could still remember seeing the Captain before. For the first min, no one talked. "Captain, how did we get attacked by the space worm"? Dean asked remembering that the captain was off the ship when this all happened.

"We're not sure what prompted the worm to attack the Zealous, or even the science station nearby. If a reason can be found, it might help to explain a lot," she mentioned, not having all of the necessary information to give a full answer right now. That was why she needed to sit down with Ti'ana, and get an update on what had been taking place in her absence.

The Turbolift came to a stop, and the doors opened, yielding a view of the Bridge. "Ensign, if you'll excuse me, I've got to talk to Commander Sullivan in my Ready Room. It was good talking with you."

"As it was good talking with you Captain." Dean said as the Captain and the commander went in to the ready room and Dean went over and sat down at tactical.”

Murdock walked into engineering, still trying to be somewhat cautious as he moved. He wasn't feeling 100% yet, and probably should not have left sickbay so soon. But, there was a job that had to be done.

No sooner had he set foot within that section, that's when he saw her . . . Yunisca.

He wasn't sure what it was, but he felt some kind of . . . connection . . . to the counselor that he hadn't felt before. It was very strange, to say the least. He couldn't quite explain the sensation, but it felt like a connection of some type - something that drew both of them together. He also didn't know why or how it started, or what prompted it, but all he knew was that it was just there.

"Hello, Yunisca. Thank you for coming."

Gone from his tone, as he greeted her, was the playfullness that he normally had possessed, although his voice was still warm and friendly. Even his words were plain and straightfoward. He didn't lapse into his usual Texan drawl, or try to joke around.

"How have you been doing? I believe we still have a dinner date to keep," he mentioned.

Turning to T'oq, Murdock requested, "Could you show me to this device that you had referred to?"

Tag: T'oq and Yunisca

Lt Cmdr. Murdock
Helm
USS Zealous

Time is a fine storyteller, and history a fond student.
-- Hannibal, "The Big Squeeze"

Alone...Dark, and alone...The feelings were alien, incomprehensible but they were easily compensated as they were replaced by more familiar sensations. Lose, grief, a sadness so deep it seemed to stretch on for all eternity. She could feel weight beneath her, and a lightness above her, as though she hung by her feet but her inner ear was failing to relay this to her mind. She stood on a smooth, black dais apparently made of jet or some other darker stone, suspended for all purpose in the middle of a matt black infinity.

The only light given off was by a ghostly see through figure, a man in form yet devoid of all features apart from the vaguest of impressions. The form, she had soon come to recognize, as a Shrouder.

"Hello, Star," the million uttering voices spoke quietly, the voice of the Shrouder called Sjet "We had hoped to meet you one last time, before....well. Before."

'Dreaming, I'm dreaming,' Star told herself. She tried to shake her head, but it wasn't there, or, at least, it felt like it wasn't there. Bringing a hand to touch the side of her face, she felt. Looking at the figure in front of her she remembered her last thoughts, her fearful thoughts, before darkness taking control. "Jake? Is that you? The Jake I first met as the Shrouder? Or is it the Shrouder, the being who has no remorse, no feelings, no concern." She paused then whispered, "Am I in trouble? Am I no more?"

"I am neither the one you met. nor the one of lax emotions.," the figure said softly, almost parentally. "I am who I am, a Shoulder conjured from a joining of minds. A...facsimile of sorts, an anthology. As for the statement of fear in which trouble may have found you, that is a pressing but not present concern"

The figure reached out and pressed transparent fingers against her cheek, a moment after their contact the sensation arrived and the depression of her flesh allowed for the mimicry of the flesh. "Trust me, your health and well being is of the utmost importance to us." The Shrouder's whispering voice cooed. "Harmful intentions will not befall you whilst you are a ward of us."

Star felt a strange feeling run through her being as it touched her. In a strange way it was comforting. 'How odd,' she thought to herself. Looking into his face with no distinguishing marks, she asked, "I am tired....what can I call you? Do you have a name?"

"Name...," it said, as though mulling the term over "...Huum...I think that to you, a name is a sign of individual merit and accomplishment. To us...names are given denoting to purpose, our reason to be." It turned and motioned with one hand to the black nightscape around them, as a hundred star grew and were born of nothing but the imagination. Soon enough constellations and the Heavens themselves were upon them, but no chill or the harsh fingers of vacuum gripped and grappled at her to equalize both temperature and pressure.

"My purpose...is as a interface between your mind and the Cache Mind of all Shrouders." it's featureless face seemed to twist slightly, as though a smile were forming under it's see through skin "I am Avatar."

"Avatar..." Star rolled the name over her tongue. "Avatar." A question formed in her mind, one that had not been there before. "Was this as it was to be from before time? My encounter with you, Jake, was not by chance? Finding a cure for the Commander, not an isolated situation? Or, was it something you, the Shrouder saw as an opportunity." Star stopped, placing her hands up to her face. "No, it wasn't an opportunity. The Wolves were not awakened. We awakened them. You died protecting me and Osswell....you...." she stopped, there were too many thoughts running through her head. She could not control them. Looking up at the faceless being she wondered if she were going insane.

"Not I...Death is a purely biological sensation, to use it is a far more complex issue." Iit seemed to pause before answering Star's other queries, of fate and such things. "Star...I wish I could explain fully what it is like to be as we are, to be...a part of something like this. But, it is actually a struggle for us to exist within the limits and constraints of a three dimesional universe."

Slowly, as if the thoughts she tried to embrace were painful, she spoke slowly, "I think I understand. In like manner, my three-dimensional thinking struggles to understand you. Yet, the link, our sharing....no....our joining has changed my mind, my thoughts, my prospective." She stopped, looking around in this place...this place that was familiar to this being and not to her, yet it was. Looking back into the faceless image, she inquired, "Is it only in sleep that you can truly show me your essence? Is it here that we communicate as equals? I have so many questions about what is going to happen and what fate I will have." Star stopped, she knew that she could not hide any thoughts from Avatar, but to voice her thoughts was somehow painful to her.

"Yes," Avatar said happily, smiling. "Yes...in sleep we are better able to communicate due to...perception. We do not have to expend so much time error checking when we are not constantly being collapsed into one form or the other by the glancing looks of others."

He grew quiet for a second, looking to one star in the sky in particular. Reaching out to it...no 'He' pointed at it and then curled his hand into a hand, pulling it close to him. Suddenly the stars shifted and moved, as though the platform and it's occupants had just gone to warp. No sooner had the stars run like water down a drain they stopped in new positions, a glowing yellow sun no larger than a marble bobbed slowly in front of them.

Star watched in amazement as Avatar changed the face of the universe, at least in her perspective. She knew it did not happen in her three-dimensional universe, but it did happen somewhere. "You know," she responded, "as strange as this sounds, I do not fear what is to come. I understand that the lines of fate is not set in stone . One small word, one small action, just as you did now, changes what could be. My finite mind cannot adequately explain this, but my thoughts do embrace it." Star stopped abruptly. "Avatar. I am the key to stopping the Wolves, but I cannot do it alone. The Shrouders, collectively, as you speak is the catalyst to this." Then she became quiet for a moment before continuing, "And, my life may be forfeit for this, for this link I have with you."

"You are correct...in this, as in all things the price may be to high for any one soul to bare,." it said this without missing a beat. "But, to not do it? To allow what is to happen to occur to all worlds? To all life?...You had a very famous biological say, once upon a time: the many come before the few."

"As Vulcan’s go...that one was a rather emotionally sound one," it thought aloud as silver rings at various distances began to form around the baby star that now remained still before them. "It is funny to think that there was one as insightful among the living world."

"The good of many outweighs the need of the one," Star voiced in a monotone voice. "It is my destiny; I embrace it, Avatar. And, if I become one with the Shrouders because of this course, I will not shun it. The salvation of the universe only matters, not my one life. But, Avatar is there hope? Is there a chance we can push back these Wolves? It would seem the battle is far beyond the universe's capabilities and understanding."

"It is but incursions are already taking place." He held out a hand to the now forming star system, as planets popped into being along the silver rails of their orbits "You see...the Wolves are everywhere, sleeping, dormant....quiet. It is only when active machinery encroaches on their sleeping brethren that they activate and become a danger."

A crackling sound filled the air for a moment, and Avatar glanced at Star. "I apologize...reception is bad due to a solar flare caused by the battle. I am attempting to access Starfleet secure frequency Omega Phi...huum, using a pictorial base line code sequence...how...quaint."

'ZZZZZZZZZZT! Jaaaaaaa-broken off from the main body, reported length is growing....Jesus, it's over a light minute long.' 'Copy Champion, retreat back to rally point Alpha at best speed. We're moving the fleet to engage them in orbit.' 'Sir, no offence but you've not seen these things! They won't stop because we have orbit....They just won't stop period!' '"Listen son, get your ship back in line or me and those Wolves will have something in common.' The chatter continued and the Shrouder shook its head, seeming to already know the out come.

Star looked aghast as she heard the words all around her. Nearly yelling, she said, "Why are we waiting? Why do we sit back when there's a weapon out there that can be utilized now? Innocent lives are lost. Avatar?"

"It's a recording." Avatar whispered as the sun grew, moving away to grow fat and large behind them. A world of golden fields and blue seas grew between them, a flickering silver sheet spread out across one side of it as what like a sheet of jagged black ice drifted slowly towards it.

"This is the world of Harvest 7 hours ago. We only received the recording presently from a Whisper craft we allowed to drift close to the main engagement. We needed to make sure there was no possible way a Federation ship or crew man had been taken intact or alive."

Anger, remorse, sorrow, guilt, blame flooded Star's being as the Shrouder's words sank into her. "I've caused this," she whispered. "My arrogance." Looking over to the planet and sun before her, a feeling of dread started to build up in her.

What Arrogance?" the Shrouder asked as a wave o glowing fire lanced out from the Federation armada, as volley after volley of photon and quantum torpedoes filled the void. The dark glass disk of the Wolves device shattered and warped in places as the wall of flame struck it...but no sooner had one thing died....a hundred tiny fragment's moved slowly forward. Like the hydra of myth, once one head was cut off two more rose up to take it's place.

Watching in horror, Star knew what was coming next. The planet and the ships defending it would be totally destroyed. "I started this, Avatar, my arrogance of thinking I could heal someone. I woke the wolves. I deserve their," pointing to the planet and ships, fate, not them." Turning over her hand and looking at her palm where the Codex was absorbed, she willed the weapon to stop the Wolves from destroying the planet and ships.
"The sword will not become active unless it perceives its own existence in danger." Avatar spoke softly. "It is a reactive rather than active matrix of femotech...unlike my real life creators the Sword has guidelines, and will follow orders that fall with in those guide lines."

With a sigh Star looked down at the palm of her hand then made a fist. Not looking up at the Shrouder, but staring at her clinched fist, she stated, "I need to know what these guidelines are so I can best use this Codex."

"If you are in mortal danger, either by direct action or by proxy, or if you are in imminent danger of infection. On that last guideline the Sword has the FemoPrints to construct a small fusion device within your body." The Avatar, the fake Shrouder, placed it hands on its see through navel. "About here or thereabouts."

Star's gaze, if possible, would have bored through the Shrouder at his words before responding. "And, this fusion device you speak of? It would explode?"

Turning away as she threw up her arms, Star responded, "Oh, great! I'm a freakin' bomb!" Then, lowering her arms, Star said above a whisper, "Yes, better than the Wolves getting the Shield." Feeling extremely tired again, Star sat down on the ground that was not beneath her feet and placed her head in her hands.

"Quite true, on both counts," the Avatar responded and then paused, cocking it's head to one side "Huum...most intrusting." Removing her hands from her face, Star looks back to Avatar and asked, "What is most interesting?"

"Apparently...they wish to talk to you." The Avatar began to fade faster...and was replaced by something of vaguely human dimension. Arms, legs, a head, but stretched and featureless, the figure floated free in space and glowed an electric blue. And yet, without eyes or any form of facial feature...or feature for that matter...it seemed to look right at her.
"Hello little sister... its words arose silently within her mind...we have wished to speak to you ever since our first memory of you.

Star couldn't help but be intrigued by this figure before her, but tried to hold her tongue. Speaking to her in her mind was not surpassing to her any more. She had become familiar with this from when Jake...the Shrouder...first entered her mind. Question after question flooded her mind...she had to forcibly control them. Finally, the only question that came out of her mouth was, "Sister?"

Yes,...we feel that we know you more as kin, than of the other. He told us about you, and we saw you through his eyes throughout your journey with him. I am honoured to pass along a message, if you would allow me to, from the rest of the Shrouders. They have come to a consensus on a correct...subject...to broach to you.

he figure hovered and swayed slightly, arms and leg's with had neither hands or feet danced slightly. It was like someone had tried to draw a person with only half a picture of on, and could only use a ruler and a felt tip pen.

Standing back up to face this being or joint being, Star fixed her gray eyes on him and answered, "Yes, by all means. Convey your message."

Our message is thus-be light of foot and quick of mind, we look forward to you being with us and eagerly anticipate your decision to join with us. If a faceless being could smile, this one was, and broadly so.

A shock jolted through Star at the words, then fear welled up within her, then back to a feeling of a dark deep void within her gut. Her voice cracked as she spoke, "You...you....I....." Shaking her head Star tried to gather her thoughts, "I will become one with you? But, is it my choice to....to...lose my existence?"

It is not a loss...we are of a group mind yes, but we are all separate and singular. We harbour no secret, our fear's are those of the group...we want for nothing but to expand that which we wish to know. The Shrouder weaved back and forth for a moment, The choice is yours...but we would be deeply honour to share what we are with you. There is a long list of Shrouders wishing to speak to you, to know of you.

Star didn't know if she should be in awe or in shock. What brushed her mind was genuine, that she was sure of, but it was so different from what she had seen in the Shrouder, Avatar. Granted she did sense a protection from him. But she wondered, protection from what? There was a dark side, possibly an evil side, she feared. Her finite mind could not contain the understanding of all this. Controlling her fleeting thoughts, Star responded, "I look forward to speaking to you...all. But, right now, I must understand my role in all this. Yes, I know I have the Shield within me and I know it has something to do with defeating the Wolves. And, yes, the feeling of power of this Codex is great and requires every fiber of my being to control it. I will not allow it to control me, but I will control it. I just need the means, the knowledge to know how."

In this we are in joint agreement. And we hold many of the answer's you seek but we are in unison that your mind is not...ready for so many truths. But know this, that we will do what ever we can to safe guard you...you are alone the most singular and rare of all biological entities. Your question, you understand and you draw only rational conclusions whilst listening to your feelings. It is something a number of us forget occasionally.

A single thought crossed Star's mind to the response of this being's words. Somehow, she was able to separate that thought to be hers alone. Somehow she knew this thought would not be shared with the ones in her head. Strange, but she could not separate her own thoughts when needed. Her thought, 'These beings may need me. They have realized something they may have lost...feelings. Tempting, indeed, to join with them. The joining would bring my existence beyond my present reality...but...what loss?'

Focusing on the being, Star responded, "I will accept your wisdom in this,....." she could not place a name. "Do you have a name? A separate identity from the rest? Or should I just call you 'Shrouder?'"

My name is Laguna, and you show wisdom beyond the small span of time on which you have affected so many paths of late. He was correct in finding you. We didn't not see his logi before now, and many of our number regret not believing him.

Star stood there unconsciously biting her lower lip. She felt inadequate against his praise of her. She did not think herself special by any means. "I will do my best to fulfill whatever destiny is required of me, Laguna. I only desire that the universe will be preserved, that life here, as it is, will be preserved."

As do we...for how can we not learn if there are no one left to teach us? To join us? Our numbers are not what they once were.

Star mouthed the words, 'teach them?' 'Join them?' More questions formed in her mind as she remembered Avatar explaining to her the beginning of their existence millennia ago. Closing her eyes for a brief second she knew those questions would have to wait; they were not pertinent at the moment. Opening her eyes, she gazed on the form and asked a simple question. "What is next, now?"

Now..you will travel to the floor called FG-0897-X by Starfleet Astrogation. We call it Onyx, and it is there the Shield of Sajuuk can be found...and, we do not know. We look forward to experiencing the moment when it occurs.

"You do not know? Know exactly what, Laguna?" Star inquired. "You do not know if the Onyx is really there?" Star comes a realization. "You do not know everything, do you?"

No, we do not, what would an eternal existence bring us if we knew everything. We hope the Shield on Onyx will save as many lives as possible, but it is a guess. A guess with much knowledge and wisdom behind it but still...a glimmer of hope. It is why, once in a great while, we seek out those select few whom are...special...and ask of them a sidle question...to join us or not.

Letting out a slow breath, Star wanted to avoid the answer to that question...to join them or not. "Well, right now, let's see if we can defeat the Wolves. That takes precedence over anything else." Star paused as another thought crossed her mind. Speaking it, she continued, "But, even if they are defeated, you may still need someone to carry the Codex, again, even within my life span. It could be wiser for me to stay as I am."

There is a wisdom to your words...but we will see, time is a luxury we have in ample supply and our offer extends far beyond this moment in time. We will not pressure you though some of us are...more eager than others.

"Very well, Laguna. Let's see, first, if we can defeat the Wolves and save the Universe first," Star said with strength in her voice.

As you wish, Star...we wish you much grace and speed in your quest and...yes....you will not be alone. We are here for you as much as you are here for us.

A slight smile crossed her face. She had become accustomed to the "presence" with her. "One more question, Laguna. Can I speak to you when I desire?"

Huuum...You are not speaking to 'me' presently, but to a Shrouder within range of you by the name if Seporath...she is passing along my words and feelings to you, as she is doing like wise for your words. She was quite honoured for the task, as her name is quite close to the top of the list of people whop wish to converse with you/...She's the 10'000th name I think.

Whispered, '10,000th name?' Star faced looked amazed. "How many are you?" 3 to the power of 10 I think, or some smaller number. Your antic's have perked a number of the more curious Shrouders.

Star shook her head still thinking she was no one of value to anyone let alone beings beyond her reasoning. Letting out a sigh, she responded, "This is too overwhelming, you know. Whom am I that beings such as yourself should be mindful of me?" The question was a rhetorical one; not expected to be answered.

You are unique, unequalled, a diamond in the rough so to speak. You are so like us, yet as alien as moss to a multi cellular organism.

"We shall see, we shall see. Only what happens next will determine that. That is for sure," Star responded still not sure if she was the answer to this threat...or part of the answer to this threat. "I need to rest," Star added feeling extremely tired, again.

Your mind does yes...you body is quite well rested. Avatar is keeping an ever careful eye on your body for you. He is a very mindful BI.

A quick shill ran up Star's spine. The Shrouders were more than just creatures of purpose. She wondered how she was changed already from their contact. Wanting to return to her reality, she asked, "Is there anything else you need to tell me?"

Not of pressing importance...though I would ask if you a favor before you go, call it something of a little fan worship. Slightly shaking her head, Star could not fathom their interest in her. "A favour? If I can," Star responded.

Would you...eat a apple, remember it for us? A quizzical expression crossed her face as she repeated, "An apple? You want me to imagine eating an apple?"

No...no we wish you to eat one, and remember it...if we cannot ask you to join us now, and reside to asking you later we would be greatly honored to possess such a memory from you. A snap shot of living. Watching the being in front of her, Star replied, "That I can do. I will eat an apple and remember it for all of you to share."

Thank you...though I fear you list of admirers might well grow from such a tid-bit. Smiling, Star responded, "Please, no more mention of admirers. It's a little much to fathom."

Thus, the price of fame my dear. Star just shook her head at his reply. She would have many thoughts, and hopefully, time to sort all of this out.

Laguna began to fade, from brilliant blue to a icy fragment and then into nothing....and one by one, as though God were some caretaker heading home, the stars began to switch off.

ooc: Okey bare with me. My comp is down so i can't post to the board. I'm
using a friends to send this so feel free to post it to the board any one
who wants to

[ He wasn't sure what it was, but he felt some kind of . . . connection . .
. to the counselor that he hadn't felt before. It was very strange, to say
the least. He couldn't quite explain the sensation, but it felt like a
connection of some type - something that drew both of them together. He also
didn't know why or how it started, or what prompted it, but all he knew was
that it was just there.
"Hello, Yunisca. Thank you for coming."
Gone from his tone, as he greeted her, was the playfullness that he
normally had possessed, although his voice was still warm and friendly. Even
his words were plain and straightfoward. He didn't lapse into his usual
Texan drawl, or try to joke around.
"How have you been doing? I believe we still have a dinner date to keep,"
he mentioned.
Turning to T'oq, Murdock requested, "Could you show me to this device that
you had referred to?"]

Yunisca new the minute Murdock was there, it was an feeling that drew her.
Slowly she let the connection pull her as she gravitated towards Murdock
just in time to here him thank her for comming. Careful she watched him as
he spoke. She could see the change that had happaning. Winceing in wards
she wondered to her self weather the effects would be perminant. Waiting
until he had finished speaking she slowly leaned toward him. Speaking soft
enough for only him to hear she spoke, "Although we do have a dinner date to
keep, I'm afraid as soon as possiable we need to have a talk. You must be
feeling off and I'm afraid I know the reason why. I can only hope once we
talk you will logically understand it all."
Carefully watching him as she leaned back up she turned to face the other
man. "I'm more than willing to help in any way that I can, just let me know
what you need me to do." Pondering exactly how she was going to explain to
Murdock what exctly was happaning, and exactly what she had done, when she
couldn't even explain her reasoning to her self, she glanced at both men and
waited for them to talk.

"Well Lieutenant that was your last treatment and scans show that there is no residual trace of the radiation." a nurse told him as she put away her tricorder. "We're going to release you but if you feel any symptoms come back immediately. Oh and take it easy for the next day or so. You received a huge dose of anti-lepton radiation so you might feel a little woozy if you stress yourself."

"Woozy huh? Is that a medical opinion?" Jarrold asked jokingly.

"Lieutenant Commander Scott..." she said.

"Yes."

"Get out of my sickbay."

Jarrold jumped up and pulled on his tunic then with a slight nodd he headed out of sickbay and towards the turbolift. There was a lot of things that he needed to take care of and being laid up definately didn't help.

It was the late shift when he arrived and activity was light. His engineering team had done a fairly good job of keep things in order so he didn't have anything to complain about. As he wondered around engineering looking over everything he could have sworn that he heard Murdock voice.

<snip>
Turning to T'oq, Murdock requested, "Could you show me to this device that you had referred to?"
<snip>

That was it... he was sure that he had heard the texans distinct drawl. Of course it wasn't any more distinct than his own voice. He was after all one of the more unique people on the ship, a man of asian appearance with a thick New Orleans accent.

Upon hearing his voice Jarrold rounded to corner to see him standing with T'oq and Yunisca.

Jarrold had only talked to T'oq on one occassion but knew him to be an efficient officer. In fact he was filling the position that Jarrold had once filled... as a science officer.

Than again Jarrold had filled in more than a few positions... he had original come aboard to make use of his Psychology Degree as the ships counselor, then after a period of being away on a field assignment working with the Starfleet Corps of Engineers he decided to come home only to discover that his position had been filled in his absence. It had bothered him at first but in the end it worked out as when he saw the ships counselor it was love at first sight. Now she wasn't the ships counselor but he had finally gotten up the nerve to ask her to marry him... she said yes so now they had a lot of planning to do. He career had taken another unexpected turn also. He took a position as science officer along with a promotion but then was quickly promoted to Assistant Chief Science Officer. He only spent a few months in that position before getting promoted once again to Chief Engineer.

Zealous was definately home, it was on this ship that he had gotten to use almost every single one of his numerous degrees and he had a feeling that things would only progress for the better. The thing about this ship is that you definately never knew where you would end up.

Seagulls soared through the heavens, a comfortable breeze blowing the hairs on Luke's head. The sun was warming Luke's face. Lying under a palmtree, Luke slept peacefully.
Someone woke him. Opening his eyes, Luke found himself staring into the lovely eyes of Star Laurent. Her gray eyes seemed to look beyond him, into the deepest recesses of his soul.

How beautiful her eyes were.
How beautiful she was.

"Wake me...", she whispered. "wake me now."
Luke didn't understand, but before he could discover the hidden meaning in her message the sandy beach, the blue sky and the clear sea vanished, and he found himself in a dark room.
He looked around him, getting his bearings. Then he remembered. He'd brought Star to her quarters and had promised her to watch over her while she slept. He must have fallen asleep himself.
Slowly he rose from the couch, and checked on Star. She was sound asleep, she looked quite peaceful, only a light frown on her forehead was the sole sign of what was happening within her mind.
Gently he laid his hand on her head, surprised at how cool it felt.

Stepping off the platform onto the huge starship, she looked around at the size of it all. She'd read about these ships of the line but never thought she'd ever have the pleasure of serving on such a vessel. ~Gareth and Kamen would be ecstatic just to see this monstrocity.~ she thought, the same sadness she felt at the sheer distance between those she held dear, missing them deeply. Which inevitably brought to mind the loss they all shared. She'd found herself missing her late husband more as of late. His handsome face, always smiling at her. The happiness that seemed to surround him, and in return them all when he was around.

"Ensign..... Ensign Alden? Ma'am?" came a soft voice off to the side.

Clearing her throat to hide the pain that she was feeling, she smiled and asked, "Yes, crewmen?"

"Are you all right? You seemed a bit far away."

Chuckling with a touch of sadness, she nodded and replied, "I was. Another time. Another place."

"Oh. I see, sir." he said, not very convincingly.

She appreciated the attempt and her smile warmed, "Thank you. You wouldn't have any idea where the Counseling chief is? Would you?"

"I believe she's down in engineering, sir."

"Thank you." Mira said with sincerity.

"I can direct you if you need?" the strapping crewman offered.

Shaking her head, the Zealous' new counselor shook his hand in gratitude, saying, "That won't be necessary. I think I can find my way. You can do me one favour though?"

"That would be, ma'am?" he asked.

"Call me, Mira." giving him a friendly wink then releasing his hand. Then turning toward the door she exited to make her way to Engineering.

Star watched as Laguna faded away as did the stars. Closing her eyes, Star wondered if she would awake...awake...she needed to awake. The fear returned; the fear that she would have been absorbed into the Shrouder consciousness. But, wait, Star heard her own voice speaking to her, you have a task to complete. You are still you. Darkness all around her, darkness so deep Star could not even see a hand in front of her face.

Calling out, that was what she could do. "Wake me...." her mouth moved. She whispered again, "Wake me now."

Gently Luke laid his hand on her head, surprised at how cool it felt. "Rise and shine, Star," Luke said gently.

A voice...a voice not Laguna and not Avatar. A voice, familiar...she knew that voice. Slowly she moved away from where she had been. Feeling a gentle reassurance, she knew was Laguna's presence, Star opened her eyes. Her vision was blurred, but she could depict a figure standing over her. With a raspy voice she tried to call out, "Luke?"

Luke stood over her, watching her wake. "I'm here, Star, it's all right," he said quietly.

Quickly sitting up, a frantic look on her face, Star blurted out as she grabbed Luke's arm, "I'm alive. I'm here. Tell me what do I look like? Color, appearance...I need to know."

Luke was a bit taken aback by the sudden change that had come over her. "You look fine, a bit sleepy-eyed, but otherwise fine, I even see some blushing on your cheeks," he said half-jokingly, trying to cheer her up. "Did something happen, Star?"

Letting out a sigh, Star released the tight grip she had on Luke's arm. Shaking her head, she responded, "It was so real." Then looking into Luke's eyes, she smiled and added, "I'm fine. How long was I sleeping?"

When Star released her grip on his arm, it allowed the blood to run through his hand again, which caused a feeling of a thousand needles pricking in his hand. Luke did his best to keep on a happy face. "About five or six hours I think; I haven't really checked yet."

Star leaned back against the back of her bed. "Five or six hours? It only seemed a few minutes." Bringing her legs over to the edge of the bed, Star stood up slowly. Frowning, she said knowing this wouldn't make any sense. "I need to eat an apple. I promised them I would eat an apple." Feeling slightly lightheaded, Star reached for Luke's arm, but this time just to steady herself.

"An apple?", Luke said confused but allowing Star to steady herself on his arm. "Who are you talking about?"

"I know, I know. It doesn't make sense," Star responded. Trying to explain she continued, "Remember when Jake sacrificed his life for us on that Iconian ship? He placed his essence in that crystal he gave me. It shattered and that essence was absorbed in me. The Shrouder was still alive and made residence in my head," she said pointing to her head. "It's a long story, Luke, but, to make it simple, I've been in communications with the vast group of Shrouders, and they asked me if I would eat an apple and concentrate my thoughts to them. Somehow, they experience what I experience. They are not physical like we are. Some have forgotten certain sensations..." Star's voice trailed off as she remembered their desire to have her join them. Looking up at Luke, Star quietly added, "They want me to join them."

Luke tried very hard to make sense of what she was saying, but when he heard that those Shrouders wanted her to join them, he instantly replied, "No, you can't." It was out of his mouth before he could stop it. "I mean," Luke quickly continued, "you don't even know these people. They're not even people."

"Yes, yes, Luke. Don't worry. It's a choice I can make," Star said reassuringly. "It seems they will not absorb me if I do not want to be joined." Star hesitated for a second then continued, "But, the task ahead may be my undoing, then, perhaps, it will be my only choice. But, right now, I really need to eat an apple."

He walked over to the replicator, thinking over what she was saying. "Two Elstar Apples," Luke ordered the replicator. As the apples were being created, he said to her almost inaudible, "It's the Wolves, isn't it?"

Star nodded in silence as a response to Luke's question. "I witnessed a communications between Starfleet vessels when they were defending a planet being attacked by the Wolves. It happened, Luke," Star said with tears visible in her eyes. "A whole planet and Starfleet destroyed because of them. They are coming; coming here to wipe out all life as if life is an infection."

Luke couldn't believe it. "I thought we encountered them millions of lightyears from here? It's already begun? We need to inform the Captain about all this," he said. Then after he saw the tears in Star's eyes: "It's not your fault, Star. We couldn't have known; remember, I was there too."

"It is my fault. I awakened them," Star flatly stated. "And, the Captain is aware. We took her yacht..." Star stopped and let out a breath. "That's how Jake got back here." Closing her eyes, she tried to steady her thoughts. Then, opening them, "I feel like a pawn in a very large and deadly chess game. It would seem I am unique in some way." Glancing down at the palm of her hand, "In some very, very strange way. Right now, I hold the key to finding a weapon that will destroy these Wolves."

Looking back up to Luke, "I don't know how this is all going to play out. I have to trust the Shrouder in my head to guide me." As Star stopped speaking she looked into Luke's face. "I know this all seems incredible, but there is something...I don't know..something that will be able to stop the Wolves from destroying all life in our universe."

"And you hold the key to that weapon? Is it that tattoo on your hand, you hadn't had it before you left with the captain.." Luke asked gently.

Looking back down at her hand, Star responded, "It's where the Codex, the key to this weapon-- suppose you can call it--entered me. It's a weapon in itself as well, but it is the key to all this. I commanded it, and it destroyed the Klingons aboard their ship. I..I...I'm a Doctor, Luke, not an assassin." Memory of all those deaths hit Star hard as she sat down on the floor putting her head in her hands. Mumbling she said, "I can't think about that."

"You...killed all those Klingons.....how...." He never finished the sentence. "My God, Star," Luke said, not out of shock or anger, but out of compassion. He reached down and took her hands. He looked into her eyes and said, "I'll help you find that key. You're not alone, I'll help you, I promise."

Smiling gently at Luke's visible concern, Star drew strength from somewhere deep inside of her. It did not come from her. It seemed as if it was from the Shrouder or contact with all of them. Luke's caring fostered a response in them. Slowly standing up her eyes locked onto his, Star responded, "Thank you, Luke. It's the weapon we have to find. I am the key to unlocking it. I think the Shrouders may know where it is. It's a matter of them letting me know the location. I don't want any more deaths on my conscious, though. I may have to go alone to secure that." Star watched Luke hoping he understood.

"Star," Luke said. "You've healed me from myself, please, let me do something in return. The idea of you being alone out there, it would be unbearable." He didn't know what else to say.

Looking at him intently, Star answered, "Luke, it's not up to me. The Shrouders only tell me what I need to know the moment I need it. But, I promise you, if anyone is allowed to go with me, it will be you. Okay?"

"Thank you," Luke whispered. He felt as if a great weight had lifted of his shoulders, but in return a greater weight took its place. The weight of the Universe. But that didn't matter. He couldn't bear letting Star do this alone. he continued, "It means a great deal to me."

Tilting her head, Star wondered why this was so important to him. Instead of asking, she said, "How about that apple?"

"Huh?" Luke had completely forgotten about them. "Oh! Here," he said and gave one of the apples to Star.

Smiling, Star responded, "Thank you," as she took a bite into the apple closing her eyes letting her thoughts go toward the Shrouders. Each bite after was an explosion of flavor. Star knew it was the link she had; the Shrouders amplifying the experience. Finishing the apple she opened her eyes and looked at Luke, then said, "I think they enjoyed that."

Luke, who had in the meantime started to eat his own apple, replied with his mouth full, "You vervently veemed to vike it." He paused. "Oh, vorry," he added when he realized had just quite embarrassed himself.

Star couldn't help herself and began laughing. Luke looked cute talking with a mouthful of apple. "Didn't your mom every tell you not to eat with your mouth full?" Star asked jokingly.

Star's laughter was quite infectious as became apparent when Luke started laughing as well as bits of tiny pieces of apple shot out of his mouth.

After saying another thank you to Luke for staying with her, Star walked out of her quarters with him. She needed to get back to Sickbay to check on her patients. Moving quickly down the corridor, Star reached the medical facilities only to find her patients had been released.

Spotting the nurse on duty, Laurent walked up to her. Nurse Reilly stiffed as she saw the look on the Doctor's face. Uh, oh, she thought. "Where are my patients, nurse?" Laurent inquired.

Nurse Reilly swallowed and began to explain, "I, I dismissed them, Doctor." Star shot back, "You did what? Who gave you the authority to dismiss them without Dr. Sjet's or my approval?"

"Dr. Sjet allowed Murdock to leave, but to be on light duty. He is to return tomorrow for a follow up," Reilly answered quickly. "He was needed in Engineering."

Nodding, Star asked, "And, Commander Scott?" Nurse Reilly pierced her lips together before answering. "Well, he had his last radiation treatment, his scans show there were no residual trace of the radiation, and...and...he looked all right."

"Nurse," Laurent responded, "Commander Scott went through a serious operation. He was close to death. Just because his scans may show normal, he may not be. We had to clone major organs for him. There is still a possibility his body can reject these organs. No one, no physique, having gone through what he did, can be fine in twenty-four hours."

"I'm sorry, Doctor. Shall I call him back here?" the nurse asked. "No, Reilly. It would be like trying to coax a bull back into a pen. He won't come. Schedule for him a follow up appointment tomorrow. We can check on him then to be sure he is still doing fine. He also should be on light duty for a couple of days."

Reilly nodded and quickly moved over to a console to send the message to Commander Scott as well as a reminder to Murdock.

Ensign Percy Ryan hopped off the transporter pad and took a quick look around. The transporter room of the Zealous was bright and clean, which was a far cry from how the transporter room of the USS McKinley had looked when Percy had left her for the last time. He could still remember watching the old Nebula class ship through the viewport of the shuttle as three photon torpedoes blew her into pieces. He could still remember Captain Lee telling him that everything was going to be allright, even as Ryan had felt him go limp on the smashed bridge. The two Orion cruisers which had jumped the science vessel near the Bohr Nebula had taken them completely by surprise. All he could think was that everything had been his fault.

If only I had spotted the ion disturbence in the nebula sooner, we might have been able to raise shields. Captain Lee would still be alive.

He shook these thoughts from his head and tried best to smile at the transporter chief. Ryan picked up his duffel bag and proceeded into the corridor. The young operations officer had never been on a Prometheus class ship before, and it took a quick tap of the wall mounted display to tell him where the nearest turboshaft was. He stepped aside to let a security officer pass and then walked into the lift. "Bridge" Percy intoned and the lift began its journey upward to the command center of the ship.

The lift doors parted and he stepped out onto the bridge. He had arrived aboard at the beginning of his watch so getting his quarters in order would have to wait for later. The officer of the watch informed him that both the Captain and Executive Officer were in a meeting, so he should simply assume his post. Ryan nodded and proceeded to the operations console on the port side of the bridge. The officer there nodded and allowed Percy to relieve him. The control scheme was the same as it had been on the McKinley, just a few minor differences in where each panel was located. He logged into the console and leaned back in his chair, wondering if someone was going to say hello.

As Ens.Winchester Began the tactical diagnostic, he heard the turbo lift door open. As he turned around to see who it was, he saw an ensign walking over the OPS console. As Dean considered going over, an alarm beeped letting him know that the diagnostic was done. He checked the results before going over to greet the ensign. As he got up to go over, he forgot what he was going to say when he got over there. "Hello" Ens.Winchester said to the ensign.
"Hi" he replied
"Ens. Dean Winchester. I dont beleave i have seen you before. Then again, i have only bin on board a few hours" he said waiting for the ensign to reply.